


You Don't Belong Here

by kyanitedragon



Series: Hidekane Oneshots [8]
Category: Tokyo Ghoul
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-19
Updated: 2020-12-19
Packaged: 2021-03-10 20:06:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,413
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28162905
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kyanitedragon/pseuds/kyanitedragon
Summary: AU where Hide got out unscathed in the Anteiku Raid, but Kaneki was brought into Cochlea.
Relationships: Kaneki Ken | Sasaki Haise/Nagachika Hideyoshi
Series: Hidekane Oneshots [8]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1211751
Comments: 3
Kudos: 48





	You Don't Belong Here

An investigator led Hide into a room. Half of it was blocked off with glass, and behind the glass the room was empty.

“Where is he?” Hide demanded, pivoting around.

The investigator wasn’t phased by Hide’s tone. “They’re getting it. They should be here soon.”

 _Him, not it._ Hide corrected in his head. 

He wanted to speak up about it, but he knew he shouldn’t push his luck. He was lucky that they were letting him in here in the first place. Only Arima knew that he sympathized with ghouls, and Hide needed it to stay that way. He didn’t want to get kicked out of Cochlea if they found out.

The door on the other side of the room behind the glass opened, and Hide turned back around to see two investigators struggling to force Kaneki inside the door. 

Kaneki thrashed in their grip, trying to punch and elbow them as they gripped each of his arms. He had chains around his hands and legs, but that didn’t stop him from putting up a fight. 

“I’m sure if you said I was here, he would have come without a fight.” Hide said.

The Cochlea worker gave him a strange look, not believing him. “We’ll keep that in mind.” 

It was obvious from his tone that he wasn’t going to pass on the message. Hide rolled his eyes.

Kaneki suddenly tripped on the chains, and before he could regain his balance, the investigators shoved him away from them. Kaneki fell onto his back onto the floor, and by the time he sat back up they had slammed the door shut. Kaneki banged on the door, and there was so much desperation and fear in his actions.

“Let me out! Let me out!!! What did I do?! Where am I?!” He screamed. His voice sounded muffled and echoey through the glass barrier.

“Can I talk to him alone?” Hide asked, keeping his voice low. He didn’t want Kaneki to notice him until it was just the two of them.

“...” Hide’s escort nodded and then left. Hide waited until the door shut, and then he walked closer to the glass and knocked gently.

Kaneki tensed and slowly turned around. He seemed terrified of what he would see. His eyes widened once he saw Hide.

“Hide...?”

“Yup. It’s me, man!” Hide gave Kaneki his best smile.

“W-what are you doing here?” Kaneki looked away, shame written on his face.

“I wanted to see you!”

Kaneki forced a small smile, but he continued to look down. He rubbed his wrist awkwardly.

”Can you please come here?” Hide asked. He put a hand against the glass. He really wanted to see Kaneki in-person with no glass between them, and to be able to touch him and hug him, but this would have to do for now.

Slowly, Kaneki walked over and put his own hand against the glass, so that it matched up with his friend’s. Due to the handcuffs, his other hand had to be held awkwardly close to that arm. It looked uncomfortable to stand like that, but neither of them said anything about it.

Hide took in Kaneki’s appearance. His hair was ruffled and messy and he had bags under his eyes.

“You’re a mess.” Hide said. “Are they treating you badly? Are they feeding you?”

“It’s obviously not great treatment, but it could be a lot worse. I’m not letting them have their way with me, and I’m still figuring out my way around with these things on.” Kaneki jangled his wrists so that the chains clinked together. “And yeah, they’ve given me food.”

“Are you eating it, though?” Hide asked. He wasn’t given any updates on Kaneki’s condition.

“...” 

That silence was a _“no”._

“Kaneki.” Hide sighed. “Please eat.”

“I... I can’t...” Kaneki said, voice breaking.

“Why not? I mean, if humans are giving it to you, it's gotta be humane. You gotta eat to live. So... eat.”

“It’s not that easy, Hide...” Kaneki made a fist, and dragged it against the glass as he slowly sat down.

“I guess not...” Hide whispered. It was true that he had no idea what it was like to be turned into a ghoul.

Hide sat on the floor and crossed his legs.

“Okay, let’s talk about something else then. Or nothing, if you want. Just please look at me.”

Kaneki did as he requested, and locked eyes with him.

“Hey.” Hide whispered soothingly. “It’s okay. You’re gonna be okay. I promise.”

He smiled, and Kaneki forced a smile in response.

Hide flinched as the door behind him opened.

“Time’s up.”

“Wait! Just a few more minutes!” Hide begged. 

The Cochlea worker said nothing as he grabbed Hide’s shoulder and heaved him to his feet. 

Kaneki watched as Hide was taken away, trying his best to stay strong. But his hand tightened into a fist, and started shaking.

\---

Kaneki heard his cell door unlock. He tensed, and he readied himself to fight and defend himself. He never knew what was coming when a dove came into his cell. It could be anything from someone dropping off food, to people coming to take him away, to someone coming to question him, to a rc-suppressant syringe aiming for his eye.

(Okay, so that last one hadn’t happened yet, but Kaneki was still paranoid for it to happen.)

All Kaneki knew was that he was not in the mood for anything the CCG tried to do today.

So Kaneki readied himself and threw a punch once he saw a form coming inside his cell. The human caught his fist, and Kaneki gasped when he saw it was Hide.

“Whoa! Easy there buddy...” Hide said, forcing a laugh as he eased Kaneki’s fist down.

“Hide!” Kaneki gasped. He dropped his fighting stance and took a few steps back to give some room between them. “I’m sorry about that.”

“No harm done!” Hide replied. “I guess I should have warned you that it was me.”

“Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad I didn’t hurt you. And no offense either but...” Kaneki looked at his hand, “you blocking that punch proves that this place is draining my strength.”

“Sorry.” Hide frowned. 

“What are you doing here?” Kaneki asked.

Hide didn’t answer, he just stepped closer and embraced Kaneki in a hug.

“H-Hide?! Are you sure you should be hugging me right now?” Kaneki asked. His fingers twitched as he debated between pushing Hide away or pulling him closer. “Doesn’t an irritated and hungry ghoul raise any red flags?”

“Not when it’s you.” Hide pulled away slightly to lock eyes with him. “Unless you think it’s dangerous?”

“I don’t know...” Kaneki admitted. “I don’t trust myself normally, but I feel like I’m going stir-crazy in this cell.”

“Well, some interaction with people might help.” Hide shot him another smile. “I’ll be careful, I promise.”

Kaneki smiled back and nodded. “I know it's probably selfish, but I’m glad you’re here.”

Hide’s smile changed from playful to genuinely touched. “I’m glad to be here.”

Hide sat down on his knees, and took a look around the small cell. Kaneki sat down, leaning against the wall. They sat in silence for a while.

“...Am I going to die?” Kaneki asked grimly.

“What? No! No, no, Kaneki, that’s not why I came here! Sheesh...”

Kaneki sighed in relief.

“I’m just visiting you because I want to. You shouldn’t be here, and I’m sure you’re miserable and lonely and afraid. And besides, it’s my fault you’re in here.”

“Hide, it’s not your fault.”

“I should have done more.”

“Hide.” Kaneki said firmly. “You did all you could. There was nothing else you could have done. I don’t blame you. Finding a way to be with me after all this is more than enough.”

“I’ll keep trying to get you out of here. I promise.”

“Can I hug you?” Kaneki asked.

“You don’t need to ask. You can hug me anytime!” Hide said as he opened his arms.

Kaneki walked on his knees over to Hide and threw his arms around him. Kaneki was squeezing him tightly, and Hide noticed he was shaking.

“You’re okay. You’re gonna be okay.” Hide soothed, rubbing his back. “You’ll get out of here. You’re not gonna die in here.”

“They’ve questioned me, but I haven’t told them anything.” Kaneki whispered. His voice was cracking. “I’ve heard what happens around here. If the CCG can use ghouls, they’ll keep them alive. But if not, they exterminate them by—”

“Stop right there.” Hide interrupted. He pulled Kaneki out of the hug and shook him. “And don’t you dare even think about that either! Must you always be so dark?”

Kaneki sniffed and ducked his head down sheepishly. He shook as he tried to hold back tears.

Hide pulled Kaneki’s head to rest on his shoulder, wrapped his arms around him, and rubbed his back again.

“You can cry. It’s okay.”

The final barrier came down, and Kaneki started sobbing into his shoulder.

“Look,” Hide began in a whisper once the sobbing died down a bit. “They aren’t going to kill you. You used to be human. You’re the victim in this situation. Worse case scenario, you’re stuck to a life sentence here. But I promise that won’t be the case. And even if you didn’t have the protection of being half-human, you have your files. You never killed anyone and the CCG knows this.”

Hide let Kaneki take in this information, and waited for his crying to calm down a little more.

“Don’t you dare compare yourself to the rest of the ghouls in this place. You’re only here because this is the only place available to hold ghouls.”

They spent the rest of Hide’s allotted time embraced, before a knock came at the door. Hide quickly pulled away from Kaneki. He had gotten lucky that Arima pulled some strings to allow him in here unrecorded and unsupervised. He couldn’t afford to be caught embracing a ghoul. 

“I’ll be back.” Hide promised Kaneki before he left. “Just hang in there.”

\---

The next time Hide was allowed a session with Kaneki in his cell, Hide wanted to discuss some things. Hide had internally gone through options he could think of for getting Kaneki out of Cochlea, and tried to decide which ones were worth discussing.

“What if you joined the CCG?” Hide asked.

“What?!” Kaneki cried.

“It’s crazy and it’s a stretch, I know... but they know you’re human. What if you helped them out in fighting ghouls?”

“Hide—”

“I know it’s not the best idea.” Hide winced. “I don’t like the idea of putting you in danger like that, but it might be the only way—”

“Hide, I can’t.” Kaneki interrupted. “I could never join them.”

“I don’t know much about their investigator process, but what if they only target dangerous ghouls? Didn’t you say you were doing that yourself?”

“They don’t.” Kaneki said. He said it so quickly and with such certainty. Hide was taken aback by it, and he looked at Kaneki to see his expression.

Kaneki was looking into Hide’s eyes, dead-serious. “I saw them murder an innocent mother ghoul. I... I had to cover the daughter’s eyes myself... They went after her too... They wanted to kill her. She was 14. She never killed or hurt anyone. She was so sweet.”

“Did they get her?” Hide asked, holding his breath.

“No. No they didn’t. But it was really close.”

“I’m glad.” Hide whispered.

“And I... I’ve met other ghouls that aren’t exactly innocent. But they aren’t bad people either. I don’t want to excuse what they did, because they have done bad things, but I also can’t condemn or fight them. There are some ghouls out there who are evil and cruel and sadistic, and they need to be taken out. But... I think most of them are just trying to figure out how to survive in this world. They can change. I... I’ve seen them change.”

“I understand.” Hide said. “So that idea’s out. Ugh. There’s gotta be a way for you to earn the CCG’s trust.” Hide crossed his arms and puffed up his cheeks.

“Well, I already have, haven’t I? I mean, they trust me enough to let you in here.”

“I... don’t know... I had to put up a tough fight to get in here. I also had to sign tons of papers so they wouldn’t get sued if you hurt me or killed me.”

Kaneki’s eyes widened and he bit his lip. So much for thinking the CCG had some sort of faith in his humanity.

“But we’ll get there. I know we will.”

\---

Hide’s escort unlocked Kaneki’s cell door and Hide stepped inside.

“...He’s not in here.” Hide said, worry growing inside him.

_It’s just the wrong cell. We made a wrong turn somewhere. Right?_

“Huh? Did he finally get exterminated?” His escort asked casually.

Hide almost started hyperventilating. 

_No. No that can’t be it!!! He’s not dead! He’s NOT dead!!! Arima would have given me a warning! I would have known about it! I would have stopped it!_

“Oh.” Hide’s escort said. He had a hand against his earpiece. “The ghoul’s with the Cochlea doctors. They’ll bring it back soon.”

Hide sighed in relief. _He’s okay. He’s okay._

\---

Hide paced around Cochlea as he waited for Kaneki to be returned to his cell. His escort trailed behind him. Hide had ordered the escort to tell him the second it was announced that Kaneki was being put back in his cell.

Normally Hide would have waited directly outside Kaneki’s cell, but today Hide didn’t want to see the heartbreaking sight of the Cochlea workers pushing Kaneki around. He barely handled watching it on a normal day, much less a day when he almost had a breakdown a few minutes ago.

Hide was mostly zoned out at first as he walked. He was just walking aimlessly to keep his body busy. He wasn’t sure how much time passed before he zoned back in. He could see that in all the cells around him, the ghouls were staring at him through their cell windows. Their kakugan were activated, and they were just... staring. A few licked their lips. Hide kept his fear hidden and kept walking, acting like it hadn’t bothered him.

 _Kaneki will be back soon._ He told himself. _They’re locked up. They can’t hurt you. You’ll be with Kaneki again soon._

“Number 240 is being returned to his cell now.” Hide’s escort said.

“Finally!” Hide breathed, turning on his heel and running back to Kaneki’s cell. He could still feel the ghouls’ eyes on him.

“Wait, Nagachika-kun!” His escort cried out as he ran after him.

It wasn’t until Kaneki’s cell door closed behind him, that Hide shivered. He finally felt safe enough to show his fear.

 _I’m on your side._ Hide thought. _Why were they looking at me like that?_

Then he remembered what he told Kaneki:

_Don’t you dare compare yourself to the ghouls here._

The ghouls in Cochlea weren’t like Kaneki. He was in the SS-rate area. The worst of the worst. Cruelest of the cruel.

_You really don’t belong here, Kaneki. I need to get you out of here._

Hide blinked. 

_Kaneki. He hasn’t said anything since I got here._

Hide straightened and looked around the tiny cell. In the dark, he saw a form lying down.

“Kaneki!” Hide dropped to his side. He felt for a pulse, and sighed in relief when he felt it. Kaneki was fine, just unconscious. 

Hide sat against the cell wall, and dropped his head between his legs.

_Why? Why is the world so cruel to you?_

\---

Kaneki woke up to someone playing with his hair soothingly, and then an incredible amount of pain hit him. 

Kaneki groaned in pain, and started writhing. His stomach and lower back hurt.

“Kaneki? Kaneki, what’s wrong?”

He felt a hand run through his hair, and another stroke his face. 

Kaneki opened his eyes to see Hide’s face looking down at him. It was a surprising but very welcome sight.

“Hide...?” 

“I’m here. What’s wrong? What hurts?”

“I don’t... know...” Kaneki said. He placed a gentle hand against his stomach, not wanting to aggravate whatever wound he had.

“Hunger pain?” Hide guessed.

“No.” Kaneki shook his head. He pulled open his robe so that his abdomen was visible. He could see that he had a long stitched wound that looked like it was from a scalpel.

Hide’s eyes widened as he leaned in closer. “What did they do to you...?” He rested a gentle hand against Kaneki’s abdomen, far away from the fresh wound. 

_What_ **_did_ ** _they do?_ Kaneki wondered too.

“What’s this?” Hide lightly traced a scar on Kaneki’s other side. His surgery scar. “It kinda looks the same.”

“No... No no no!” Kaneki yelled.

“What? What did they do?” Hide asked.

“They... They took out my kakuhou.”

Hide raised an eyebrow. “Your what?”

“The organ that holds the kagune. Rize’s kakuhou that got put into my body.”

“Huh? Why? Wait, would that make you human again? Is that what the CCG did???” Hide asked, growing excited. Then he grew concerned again and asked worriedly, “Wait, don’t ghouls die when that happens? Are you dying???” 

“I don’t think so...” Kaneki said.

Kaneki’s eye suddenly turned black. Hide flinched, startled by it.

“Uh... did you mean to do that?” Hide asked, pointing at his eyes.

“That means I’m still a ghoul.” Kaneki explained.

“So did they just, like, take a look around...? Or...?” Hide asked. _You’re not human and you’re not dead. So what did they do?_

“My back hurts where my kagune is. They did _something._ ”

Then it clicked.

“I’m a kakuja.” Kaneki realized.

“That’s... the term for ghouls that eat ghouls, right?” 

“Yeah.”

“So...?” Hide gave him an expectant look. He didn’t understand how that answered what the CCG did.

“Kakuja have multiple kakuhou because cannibalization mutates it. So I can probably survive if I still have at least one left. They must have left at least one kakuhou in me.”

“How many did you have?”

“I have no idea. I didn’t even realize I had multiples until now.”

“Any way to check?”

“I can’t use my kagune so long as I’m in here, so no.”

Kaneki closed his eyes in defeat. He tried to adjust to the pain and tune it out. Hide rubbed his arm to try to sooth him.

“I’m sorry for startling you.” Kaneki whispered. “When I activated my kakugan. I should have warned you.”

“It’s okay, it didn’t scare me. I just wasn’t sure what was happening to you and _that’s_ what I was scared of.” Hide brought a hand to Kaneki’s face and rubbed under his left eye. Kaneki closed his eyes and let himself relax. “Truth is, I really like your kakugan. It’s really cool and looks pretty.”

Hide leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek.

Kaneki sighed, and slowly fell back asleep.

\---

Hide came into Kaneki’s cell, to see him laying down on his cell bed. For once, he didn’t sit up when he saw Hide.

“You okay?” Hide asked. _Did I wake him up? No, it seems like he’s been awake for a while._

“It hurts...” Kaneki whispered.

“I thought it healed?” Hide asked. He sat cross-legged at Kaneki’s side.

“The scar did. You wouldn’t think missing a mutated extra organ would hurt so much...”

“Turn over.”

“It’ll hurt worse if I move.”

“I was gonna rub your back. Think that’ll help?”

“Worth a try.” Kaneki flipped over so that he was laying on his stomach.

“Okay. Rinkaku... Lower back...” Hide said as he guessed where his kakuhou were located and put his hands on his back. “Right here?”

“Mm-hmm.” Kaneki said. “Down a tiny bit more though.”

Hide moved his hands down a touch.

“Right there.” Kaneki said.

Hide started rubbing his lower back, trying to give him a deep and relaxing massage without worsening any of the pain.

Hide moved his hands to the left a little and continued rubbing. And then he did the same on the right side of his back. There, unlike the left side, Hide could make out the form of a lump under Kaneki’s skin.

_Is that it? Is that his kakuhou?_

He moved his hands up a touch and rubbed again, and this time his hands sunk into Kaneki’s skin, like he was missing something there.

“Yeah, I think they took out a kakuhou...” Hide said. “No wonder it hurts.”

“I haven’t activated my kagune in so long now... I wonder if that would help or if it’d just make the pain worse.”

“I know next to nothing about ghoul anatomy, but I’d figure that being forced to keep your kagune dormant can’t be healthy.”

“Yeah, probably not...” 

“When we get out of here, you’ve gotta show me it. Okay?”

“If...” Kaneki muttered.

“When.” Hide said firmly. “You’re getting out of here, Kaneki.”

“...” Kaneki said nothing, but Hide was pretty sure he was thinking dark thoughts.

“Is this even helping?” Hide asked. He was still rubbing Kaneki’s back.

“It doesn’t hurt right now. And it feels good.”

“Good.”

“I’ll have to repay the favor one day.”

“And show me your kagune?” Hide asked hopefully.

“And show you my kagune.” Kaneki agreed.

\---

“What do you think they’re doing?” Hide asked. He glanced down at Kaneki laying in his lap. It had been long since the pain stopped, but the two of them found it intimate and relaxing to sit like this.

“Who?” Kaneki asked.

Hide shrugged. “All your ghoul friends. Touka-chan, Nishio-senpai, and everyone else whose names I don’t know.”

Kaneki sighed. “I’m trying not to think about it.”

“Did they have a plan if something ever was to happen?” Hide asked. “Oh, and none of this is being recorded by the way. I made sure, and I check it every time.”

“Wow. Impressive.” Kaneki said. “But really risky. What will they do if they find out?”

Hide shrugged. “Don’t know and don’t care. I’ll deal with it when and if they do.”

Kaneki chuckled. He wished he could be as nonchalant and hopeful as Hide always managed to be.

“So did they have a plan if things went wrong?”

“I’m sure they did. They’re well-prepared like that. I have no idea what that plan may have been, though.” Kaneki sighed. “I hope they’re okay.”

“I’m sure they are.”

\---

Kaneki and Hide were sitting across from each other and in the middle of a conversation, when suddenly the cell door opened and a CCG member hurried inside.

“Nagachika-kun! You need to leave, now!”

It was Hide’s escort, and he wasted no time in grabbing Hide and yanking him to his feet.

“Eh?! Why?!” Hide cried out.

Kaneki jumped to his feet too, and grabbed the escort’s shoulder, sending him a death glare.

“Don’t touch him.”

Kaneki saw the pure fear in the escort’s eyes, but Kaneki couldn’t care less. No one would be allowed to push Hide around.

The escort pulled out a small quinque blade that was hidden in his belt and jabbed it toward Kaneki.

Kaneki’s reflexes were sluggish due to the RC Suppressants, and he didn’t react in time. The blade sunk into his gut, like a knife through heated butter. Being a quinque, it would have done damage to Kaneki regardless, but since Kaneki’s half-ghoul skin was weakened from the suppressants, the blade cut through his skin much faster and deeper. Kaneki cried out in pain and dropped to his knees. He pulled the blade out and collapsed onto the floor as he held down his wound to stop the bleeding.

“Kaneki!” Hide cried. He turned and punched his escort in the face. While the man would be recovering from the punch, Hide bent down to aid Kaneki. But the escort grabbed him again and yanked him out of the room and slammed the door. 

Hide tried to open the door again, but it had locked once it closed. Through the small window, Hide could see Kaneki hadn’t gotten up yet, but Kaneki was looking up at him from the floor. He had one eye closed in pain, and he was still holding his wound.

“What was that for?!” Hide screamed. He whipped around to look at his escort, who had blood running from his nose. Hide smirked, feeling pride for causing it.

And then Hide noticed flashing lights down the hallway. All that pride disappeared as fear shot through his body.

“What’s going on?” Hide asked.

_Did a ghoul escape? A ghoul escaped; that must have been what happened. What if they come after me? I remember them eyeing me months ago._

“Aogiri broke in.”

Hide took a step back.

_No. That’s even worse._

“Okay, remember the drills...” The escort said to himself. He grabbed Hide’s arm and pulled him. “We need to get to the — Look out!”

He shoved Hide, and Hide ducked and scooted to slam his back against Kaneki’s cell door. It was the closest thing to safety right now. In front of him, his escort was laying face-down and bleeding out, most likely killed instantly. A group of robed Aogiri ghouls were headed over.

Hide could hear banging on the door behind him. Kaneki was trying to get out. 

But Hide didn’t have a key to the cell. And, not that he would have made it without getting attacked by Aogiri, but his escort didn’t have a key on him either. The cell door could only be unlocked by the Cochlea command center.

“You don’t look like a Dove...” One of the ghouls commented, cocking their head as they walked closer. Their kakugan was blazing and their ukaku wing was spread out behind them. It was strangely beautiful. Like an angel of death.

The ghouls under their command surrounded the area in a half-circle, so that there was no way of escape.

A siren started ringing, but it didn’t sound like it was to signal danger. It was to signal attention. Then he heard a click, and Hide realized.

They were unlocking the ghouls’ cells.

Hide leaned forward so he was no longer leaning against the cell door.

“I guess it doesn’t matter what you are. You obviously aren’t a ghoul.” The kagune wing solidified and sharpened into points, and Hide swallowed.

_Am I going to die?_

Hide screamed as he ghoul fired; he had no idea if Kaneki would make it in time or even be capable of rescuing him in his condition.

Hide ducked his head down, hoping that he could somehow dodge the kagune projectiles at this close a range.

He heard a grunt of pain, and opened his eyes and looked up. Kaneki was acting as his shield.

“Eh?! Y-you!” The ukaku ghoul said. Hide couldn’t see his face behind the mask, but he sounded surprised. Hide hoped they knew each other. Maybe they were friends.

Kaneki collapsed to his knees, struggling to stay upright.

“Don’t...” Kaneki forced out. “Don’t kill... him...!”

“He’s a human!” The ghoul exclaimed.

“Don’t... kill...” Kaneki repeated. Blood sputtered from his mouth.

“Half-ass...” The ghoul muttered angrily.

 _It sounds like they know each other..._ Hide thought, but he kept his mouth shut.

“Are you going to kill me, Ayato?” Kaneki asked.

_Okay so maybe they aren’t on good terms._

“I should after what you did to me.” The ghoul growled. “But... She knows you.”

“Touka-chan?” Kaneki guessed.

“Hina.”

Kaneki gasped. “How do you know Hinami-chan?!”

“None of your business. I’ve wasted enough time here. Enjoy your prey I didn’t kill, or whatever you plan to do with that human.”

The ghoul gestured to the ghouls under his command, and they all walked away.

“Wait! Ayato!” Kaneki screamed, and then winced and started hacking up blood. Hide jumped up and scrambled over to Kaneki to help support him. 

“Eugh.” Rabbit groaned in disgust, watching the two of them. 

Kaneki grabbed Hide roughly and used him as support to force himself to his feet. Hide flinched at the contact. Kaneki had never been that rough with him before, and Hide was pretty nervous and scared because of all the ghouls and general danger around him. But Kaneki seemed to be desperate and not out of control, so Hide held himself together — both emotionally, and physically under Kaneki’s dead weight.

“How do you know Hinami-chan?!” Kaneki demanded.

“She joined Aogiri.” The ghoul said simply before he turned the corner.

“No...” Kaneki whispered. He half-fell and half-purposely dropped to his knees. Hide caught him to make sure he didn’t fall even farther and hurt himself worse. “No, no, NO!” Kaneki punched the ground.

“Kaneki...” Hide whispered.

“She can’t have—” Kaneki whispered. Then he growled. “They better not have hurt her...”

“Who’s Hinami-chan?” Hide asked.

Kaneki gasped, but it wasn’t in response to Hide. He didn’t even seem to hear Hide’s question. “What if she’s here?”

“I still don’t know who she is.”

“HINAMI-CHAN!” Kaneki screamed.

Hide flinched and covered his ears.

“HINAMI-CH—” Kaneki started coughing, hacking up even more blood.

“Okay, Kaneki, stop!” Hide cried. “Just stop. Please. You’re hurt.”

“Hinami... chan...” Kaneki continued, but it only came out as a whisper. Blood dripped down his chin. “She can... help...”

“W-what do you want me to do? How can I help you?”

Hide was freaking out. He wasn’t sure what exactly RC Suppressors did to a ghoul. Would Kaneki heal okay? How severely was he hurt in the first place? When was the last time he ate? 

Would Aogiri come back? He didn’t want Kaneki to try to protect him again. 

Should they close the door and wait in his cell? But this might be Kaneki’s only chance of escape. But there was no guarantee either of them would get out alive, either. Even if they both somehow escaped and survived, the CCG would consider Hide a traitor and a criminal for letting a ghoul escape. Unless... Hide stayed here while Kaneki escaped? He could maybe play dumb about being unable to stop Kaneki from leaving. If he managed to survive the Aogiri attack, that is.

“What do I do?!” Hide yelled. He sucked in a breath as his eyes began to sting. He was about to start crying. He was holding back tears and sobs.

Kaneki slowly laid down, and Hide helped to ease him down. Kaneki took careful and heavy breaths. 

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry, Kaneki. This is all my fault...”

Kaneki shook his head. “No, it’s… not... Hide... I want you... to run.”

“Huh?”

“Go... Escape...”

“No, I’m not gonna just leave you here! And even if I _did_ run, you really think I’d make it out alive? Aogiri’s probably all over this place!”

“I can’t let... you die...”

“Kaneki... Kaneki stay with me! You can’t die on me, either!” 

Kaneki’s mouth twitched upward in a weak, amused smirk. “I’m... not dying. I’ll... be… fine...” He fell unconscious.

“Kaneki?” Hide asked. “Kaneki!” 

_What do I do?!_

\---

Hide just sat there, trying to come up with a plan, and scared of more Aogiri ghouls finding them.

“Onii-chan?” A voice asked.

Hide gasped and spun around.

A young female ghoul wearing a mask had just turned the corner. She released her kagune and held them defensively.

“What are you doing to him?” She demanded, taking steps closer.

“N-nothing!” Hide cried. He could see her eyes glowing red from behind her mask. He was terrified. “A-are you Hinami-chan?”

The girl froze. “...How do you know my name?”

“I’m Kaneki’s best friend. I-I know I’m human, but please trust me. I’m on your side. He’s hurt badly, a-and I don’t know what to do.”

“Onii-chan.” Her kagune dissipated and she ran over and slid on her knees to the other side of Kaneki. She threw her mask off, and Hide saw just how young she was. She was only a teenager.

 **She was 14.** Kaneki’s voice echoed in his head.

_She’s the daughter ghoul._

“Onii-chan...” She repeated, looking at Kaneki’s face and then his wound. “If only I’d gotten here soon. If only I had known...”

“He wouldn’t want you to blame yourself. For _either_ of us to blame ourselves.” Hide said.

Hinami chuckled sadly. “He always took all the blame.”

“Yeah.” Hide smiled. She really did know Kaneki.

She released her kagune again, and she carefully used it to pick Kaneki up.

“Wait. T-take me with you.” Hide said.

“I can’t. You’re human.”

“Please. I want to be with him. I can’t leave him.”

“I can’t guarantee your safety.” She warned. She grabbed her mask with her kagune and moved it into her hands before putting it back on her head.

“I’m willing to take that chance.”

“...” She hesitated. “Alright. Stay close to me.” 

She wrapped a kagune limb around him, although not touching him. It was to be a shield, he guessed, to block any incoming attacks and to be prepared in case she did need to grab him.

Hinami headed off, and Hide made sure to stay close to her.

\---

“Hina? What the hell are you doing?!” It was the same ghoul that had almost killed him earlier. Ayato, Hide remembered.

“This human is Onii-chan’s friend. We’re bringing him with us.” Hinami declared. 

“Tatara and Eto won’t like that.” Ayato warned. “And I dunno if I’d trust them with the half-ass after Owl and Floppy, either. I heard that Kanou did some seriously messed up things to those two.”

“Then, :re?” Hinami asked.

“You know how that place works better than I do.” Ayato put his hands up, not wanting to be involved in the decision.

Hinami turned to Hide. “Do you know Onee- I mean, Touka? Touka Kirishima?”

“Sorta?” Hide replied. “I know _of_ her, and I know her and Kaneki are close, but she doesn’t know that I know that she’s a ghoul.”

“...Her coffee shop would be a lot safer than Aogiri.” Ayato said. “But she might kill you if she deems you a threat. At least, she’s supposed to. She’s pretty soft around certain humans. Maybe you’ll get lucky.”

“What would happen at Aogiri?” Hide asked. These two ghouls seemed nice.

“If I were you, I would personally rather take a quick death by Touka than be tortured by the top brass of Aogiri.”

Hide swallowed nervously. _Torture?!_

“What else would you expect from the infamous anti-human organization?” Ayato asked. He smirked, showing his teeth. He really did look like a predator. Hide shivered.

“Ayato...” Hinami chided.

“What? Can’t I have some fun with him?” Ayato asked innocently.

“O-okay, Touka-chan’s coffee shop it is, then.” Hide said, trying to get his nerves in check.

“I’ll take them.” Ayato announced.

“Huh???” Hide and Hinami asked at the same time.

“You need to be there when they regroup, Hina. I’ve been here for years, and Tatara won’t mind if I’m late.”

“Thank you...” Hinami whispered.

Hide smiled. Ayato was a completely different person around her. He must really care about and love her.

“Wipe that grin off your face, human!”

“Sorry!!!”

_But he’s still scary..._

Hinami giggled. It sounded so innocent and childlike, and it made Hide relax a bit again.

Ayato swung Kaneki over his shoulder, not being overly gentle but thankfully not throwing him around like a rag-doll either. 

“Come with me.” Ayato said, gesturing as he walked off.

\---

“Is Touka-chan your sister?” Hide asked as he followed Ayato.

“Why do you suppose that?” Ayato replied, making sure to not show any hint of a yes or no.

“It’s not too hard to figure out. Even without seeing your face. You have similar hairstyles, and you both like rabbits.”

“Well, congratulations, human, you figured it out.” Ayato said sarcastically.

“Hide.” Hide supplied his name. “Not human. Or use my family name Nagachika if you don’t wanna call me by my nickname. Or my full given name Hideyoshi. I don’t care which, but please stop calling me ‘human’.”

“Too bad.”

“Okay, fine. Ghoul.” Hide shot back.

Ayato groaned in frustration. 

\---

“We’re here.” Ayato announced.

:re was closed, and inside the building was dark. The _whole street_ was dark.

Ayato bent down and placed Kaneki against the glass window. Then he turned and began to walk away.

“U-um! Aren’t you gonna, like, make sure she doesn’t kill me?”

“That’s your risk, not mine!”

“Is this cuz I called you ‘ghoul’??? I’m sorry!!! This is _not_ cool, man!!!”

Ayato gave a “peace!” hand wave, and continued to walk away.

Hide knocked on :re’s door and then sat down next to Kaneki.

_What if she’s not even here? What if she’s blocks away? The CCG will end up catching us..._

\---

It thankfully didn’t take all that long for someone to come and answer the door. And much to Hide’s relief, it was Touka.

“Touka-chan!!! I’m so glad to see you!!! Kane—” Hide didn’t even get to begin his explanation.

“Kaneki?!” Touka dropped down to his side and checked his vitals. And then she glanced up at Hide, kakugan activated, and a red mist flowing out from her shoulder.

“Touka-chan...” Hide said cautiously, putting his hands up innocently. “I know, and I accept both him and you. I’m on your side. Please trust me.”

She kept her threatening glare for a few more moments, and then she blinked and her eyes were back to being their usual shade of violet.

“Hold the door.” She said softly, putting her hands under Kaneki and picking him up.

Hide did as she said, and silently followed her as she navigated through the dark apartment and up the stairs. There was a hallway, and she walked down it.

“This door too.” Touka said, gesturing to the second door in the hallway. There was a sign on the wall that labeled the room as belonging to someone named “Yomo.”

Once Touka walked through, Hide followed close behind. He wasn’t going to leave Kaneki yet.

In the room, he saw a grey-haired man sitting on a bed, reading a book. Once he saw Touka and Hide, the man tensed and stood up. His face didn’t show much emotion, and that somehow made him even more intimidating.

_This must be Yomo. I don’t remember seeing him in Anteiku._

“It’s okay.” Touka told the man as she gently placed Kaneki on the bed. “...I think.”

Yomo looked between the two of them, a hint of uncertainty on his face. 

“He’s Kaneki’s friend.” Touka added.

“What happened to Ken?” Yomo finally spoke.

Touka looked at Hide, waiting for answers.

“Ugh, what hasn’t happened?” Hide asked with a sigh. He sat down on the bed without asking permission. “So, he got captured and thrown into Cochlea. I’ve known all this time about you guys being ghouls. Please don’t get mad at Kaneki about that; he didn’t know until pretty recently. Anyway, I was visiting him and trying to figure out a way to break him out without either of us getting killed. And then... Aogiri broke into Cochlea and broke out some ghouls. I’m not sure how many or who. Kaneki wasn’t doing too good before that because of the RC Suppressors, and then he got stabbed by a quinque and got attacked by a ghoul, and he ended up collapsing.”

“It was my brother, wasn’t it?” Touka asked.

“How did you—?” Hide asked. He purposely didn’t say who it was because he didn’t want to get Ayato in trouble. Their relationship seemed complicated enough. Touka being “soft around certain humans” and Ayato being in the anti-human organization.

“I can tell this is from his kagune.” She said, gesturing to the multiple stab wounds littering Kaneki’s body.

“Oh. Right. Of course you would recognize that.”

“So how did you get here? My brother’s not too fond of humans.” 

“Hinami-chan convinced him.” Hide said, hoping that that would be enough of an explanation.

“Hinami-chan?!” Touka asked, gripping Hide’s shoulders and looking desperately into his eyes. “Where is she? Is she okay?”

Hide put his hands up innocently. He hadn’t expected that reaction. “She’s a part of Aogiri. I... I think? I don’t know who she is. So I guess you’d need to ask Kaneki when he wakes up. He might know more.” Hide looked back at Kaneki. “Is he gonna be okay?”

“Ken’s a tough guy. He’ll be fine.” Yomo said.

“I want to stay here. At least until he wakes up.” Hide said slowly. “But honestly, we’ll both need a safe place to stay from now on.”

Yomo sighed, sounding annoyed and sad at the same time.

“You can stay for now. I’ll... think about what to do with you two long-term.” Touka said. 

The three of them worked together to undress Kaneki, clean and bandage him up, and then put him into spare clothes. After tucking him into bed, Touka showed Hide to the shower and handed him spare clothes as well. 

“Are you sure you want to stay?” Touka asked Hide softly. “We understand if you don’t. We won’t get mad or offended by it.”

“I’m fine. I think.” Hide said. “I hope.”

“You can leave or take a breather anytime, okay? No explanation necessary; you’re not confined here or anything.” Touka said softly. 

“Okay. Thanks.” Hide said.

“Call out for me or Yomo if you need anything. We need to work at :re in the morning, but we’ll be checking in on Kaneki. Please tell us when he wakes up. And let him know that he can have...” She hesitated.

“That you have food for him when he wakes up?” Hide supplied.

“Yeah. Just let him know.” Touka nodded timidly, then left the room.

\---

For hours, Hide sat against the headrest in silence, but he wasn’t bored. His mind was wandering — reflecting on today’s incident as well as everything since Kaneki had become a ghoul. 

_What did he do? What was Kaneki likely doing back then? What was he going through? What should have I done?_

After several hours, Kaneki woke up. 

“Hide? Where are we?”

“We’re at Touka’s.”

Hide explained the events of what happened and caught Kaneki up to speed.

“Wow...” Kaneki whispered. “So much happened. I can’t believe it, but it sounds like everything somehow worked out.”

“I told you everything would be fine!” Hide smiled.

“I’m sorry I worried you.” Kaneki said. “I’ve... never seen you cry before.”

Hide looked down. He didn’t like people to see him cry. Especially Kaneki. Hide was the strong one, always keeping his emotions together and in check.

“Like you tell me...” Kaneki began. “...Don’t hide anything from me. I’m here for you, just like you’re always here for me.”

Hide nodded slowly. “I just don’t know what to do to help you. I’m... just a human.”

“Like I told you before, just being here with me by my side is more than enough.”

Kaneki reached out and grabbed Hide’s hand and squeezed. Hide squeezed back.

“Hey…” Kaneki whispered. “Back in my cell... you kissed me once...”

Hide froze, and could feel his face heating up. He hadn’t realized that Kaneki had remembered that. He hadn’t mentioned it before.

“...Or you didn’t?” Kaneki flustered and started panicking. “M-Maybe I’m remembering it wrong. I mean, I was pretty out of it. Maybe it was just a dream.” He flinched, realizing how lovestruck that phrasing sounded. “I mean, hallucinating!”

“N-no, it was real. I did kiss you.” Hide finally answered. “Well, on the cheek...”

“...Oh.”

“I’m sorry, I guess I should have asked if it was okay.”

Kaneki looked away bashfully. “It’s okay. It was sweet. I... I liked it.”

Hide didn’t know what was happening but he suddenly felt incredibly confident and at ease. Maybe it was just this intimate moment. Maybe it was the event of almost losing Kaneki. But he knew he had to say it now.

“Kaneki.”

“Yeah?”

“I love you.”

Kaneki smiled, but it held a hint of sadness. Hide leaned in closer, intending to ask what was wrong and comfort him, but Kaneki stopped him by placing a hand on his chest, keeping him that distance away.

“I take it you’re willing to be in a relationship with me, as I am? As a half-ghoul? After the little self-control you’ve seen me have?”

Hide nodded slowly. “I trust you. We can work it out. I’ll be understanding and not pushy about it. I promise.”

Kaneki took a moment to take that in, and Hide gave him time. Then Kaneki nodded slowly, and finally smiled properly. “Okay. I accept.”


End file.
